Wednesday, December 31, 2008

It's the new year. Everyone has New Year's resolutions - and we at Legal.Now are no different. So here are our resolutions - may each and every single one come to pass before 2009 is out!

1. An end to federal raids on law-abiding medicinal marijuana patients.

Under Barack Obama's administration, this is easily the most significant and most

accomplishable change we can expect this year. Obama has already promised to end federal

raids of law-abiding medicinal marijuana patients, and with enough pressure from activists, he

can effect this change without any loss in political capital.

2. Proper enforcement of 'lowest priority' laws in districts such as Santa Cruz and Missoula County.

While 'lowest priority' laws are certainly commendable, reports such as the one released last month in Missoula County leave reason to doubt that they are actually being followed. When voters speak and legislation is enacted, law enforcement has an obligation to follow the legislation.

3. Successful decriminalization in Massachusetts.

Huh? Didn't they vote on this just two months ago? Well, yes, but just because a law is on the books doesn't mean anything actually changes. As far as I am concerned, 'success' in Massachusetts will mean at least three things:

1. The law will not be repealed.

2. Violators will be charged with the appropriate offense (ie, not charged with intent to distribute when the real offense is clearly posession of a few grams in a single bag).

3. There are no negative consequences to the law (such as a sudden spike in violent crime).

4. The media does not portray the law unfavorably.

I am not particularly worried about #3, because every study shows that marijuana use is not connected to violent crime in any way. (Sale and traffiking is another matter). As for the media, while they have not been reporting the facts as faithfully as one would like, they have not been overly biased against the law either. Thus, I would expect that the media will slightly over-emphasize the possibility of negative ramifications, but not any more than they normally do. In all, as long as Massachusetts residents put enough pressure on the legislature not to repeal the law and there is enough pressure on the judicial side to enforce the law fairly, I think that the new law will be a successs.

As you can see, with these three resolutions, we have our work cut out for us, but all three are within the range of possibility. If you have any further ideas for resolutions, contact us, so that we may take proper action.

In just two days, Question 2, which decriminalizes possession of less than an ounce of marijuana in Massachusetts, takes effect. Under the new law, the violation is a ticketable, but not arrestable, offense. Police may fine offenders $100 and confiscate the marijuana, but offenders face no criminal record and no jail time.

Already, officials are trying to circumvent the new law, and the latest proposal notes that the new law allows for additional town bylaws. State officials are encouraging towns to pass bylaws to outlaw smoking marijuana in public. The problem? They are considering making this a misdemeanor offense, effectively recriminalizing the substance that 65% of the state - and every town except three - voted to decriminalize.

What they fail to mention is that, depending on how the new bylaws are worded, police may be able to arrest people for possession in public places, arguing that the offender is possessing the drug in public, even if he or she is not smoking.

If your city or town is considering passing such a law, write to your local officials urging them not to recriminalize posession. In your letter, be sure to mention:

2. That public smoking, if even punishable, should not be considered a criminal offense.

3. That the fines for criminal offenses are paid to the state, whereas the fines for a civil offense are paid to the town. (This means that, if towns pass bylaws recriminalizing possession, they are robbing themselves of the revenue from fines).

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Of the top ten questions in the 'Additional issues' section, five relate to marijuana, including the top three questions from the section.

The second most popular question under 'National Security' begins, 'Our current war on drugs is failing America'.

Clearly, marijuana policy reform is an important issue to those concerned about this administration. Massachusetts and Michigan both passed ballot initiatives to reform marijuana laws in the November elections, and these intiatives received a bigger share of the vote than Obama did.

We need to be sure that the new administration understands how strongly the country feels about this issue. Keep voting at change.gov - for those of you who haven't already, registration is fast and painless (they don't even send a confirmation email).

Monday, December 29, 2008

Barack Obama has opened a section of his website for a second round of questions.

Last time, the top question was about marijuana policy reform, and Obama's answer was brief and dismissive: 'President-elect obama is not in favor of the legalization of marijuana.'

No explanation, no evidence, and no rationale. If I had to guess why, I'd probably say because Obama knows there is no rational explanation.

Here is our chance to send a strong message: yes, we actually meant it! If you log into change.gov (and you don't even need to verify your email, so it should take about thirty seconds to register), you will see that questions about marijuana are in the top ten under categories such as 'National Security' and 'Additional Issues'. There are multiple questions about marijuana in each category, and the more we vote for these questions, the more likely we are to see change in this administration.

My personal opinion: questions about ending DEA raids are the most significant, because it is the step that Obama is most likely to take first. He can end DEA raids on patients using marijuana with a prescription, all without spending much political capital.

That said, vote for all the questions that you would like Obama to answer. Let's make sure that the Obama administration gets the message.

Welcome to Legal.Now. This blog is designed for those who support the decriminalization and/or legalization of marijuana - in any form - to learn about steps we can take to make legalization a reality.